Grille



11,689,164 P. sYLvEsrER GRILLE Oct. 23, 1928.

Filed'sept. V, 1926 Patented ct. 23, 1928.

' g UNITED STATI-:s

` PASCAL SYLVESTER, F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 PASCAL SYL A CORPORATION 0F ILLINOIS.

PATENT OFFICE.

GRILLE.

Application med september 1, 1926. serial N9. iasocfv My invention relates to improvements in grilles for terrazzdoor constructions and 1s particularly adapted for use 1n the making of that type of terrazzo ooring in which various designs are laid out with terrazzo of contrasting color or texture. J

The principal object of the invention 1s to provide factory made units which may be lReferring to the drawings, it will be seen thatrmy grille unit is composed of strip metal, preferably brass, all of the strips being cut from a continuous strip of uniform and rectangular cross section. The strip is perforated at intervals as shown at 10. These apertures are provided to enable the cement of the terrazzo filling to enter the aperidelivered to the job in condition ready to be Utures and thus form a bond preventing the placed in the floor without the necessity of doing extensive manual 'Work on the grille work preparatory to laying the terrazzo.

I am aware that heretofore ornamental terrazzo flooring has been laid by means of metallic strips laid edgewise inthe terrazzo surface for marking the boundaries of the terrazzo area of contrasting colors. However, so far as I am advised, s'uch grillage has heretofore been made up on the job itself from individual strips of metal bent to the shape of the design desired and positioned on the floor base individually.

` The old method has been fairly successful in the case of very plain designs relatively free from curvilinear outlines, but has not been commercially successful for use with complicated or highly ornamental designs having curved bound aries. According to my invention the grillage desired forproducing these more or less intricate or curvilinear designs is made up in advance as a factory proposition and all the worlrequired of the men on the job is to take the completed gril- Vlage or grillage units and lay them in position on the floor. With my improved units it is not necessary to cut the strips or curve them or connect with other strips while the work, is going on. l In the drawings accompanying this appli-l cation and illustrating aselected embodiment of my invention:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one of my improved grillage units;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a section terrazzo flooring showing the manner in which the gri'lage unit is utilized in makingthe floor, an

ig. 3 is a section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

` l It will be observed that the apertures 10 are relativelyI narrow with res ect to theirv vertical dlmensions while eing elongated lengthwise of the strip. Thus each aperture may be made of considerable area, for the purpose of providing a proper bond, while at thesame time, owing to the narrowness of the aperture the bending of the strip into a regular curvilinear form is not interfered with.

It will be observed by'reference to the perspective view in Fig. 1 that the main elements of the structure comprise a pair of continuous curved sections 11 and 12'to which are connected pairs of shorter curved l members 13, 14, 15, and 16,' These six members constitute the outlines of thel areas 17, 18,19, and 20, see- Fig. 2. The intermediate areas 21, 22, 23 andl VESTER, INC.,

of the grillage are connected together should not appear at the surface of the terrazzo which should display only the edges of the boundary strips as shdwn 1n Fig. 2. For this reason the connecting means .are located wholly below the top plane of the grillage. It-isalso desirable that the bottom plane of the grille should be flat so that when the grille is applied to the underlying concrete base, the top' edge faces of the various strip por'- tions of the grille will all be locatedl in the top plane oftheterrazzo face when the latter is finished. Therefore, the connecting means should also, if possible, preferably lie above the bottom plane of the grillage. Incidentally by locating the connecting elements or means intermediate the top and bottom planes of the grille, such connecting elements` furnish an additional bond for preventing displacement of the strips after the terrazzo floor is finished.

In the embodiment shown, the strips are preferably united together by soldering at each point where theends or other surfaces of the component parts abut or come together. This is shown for example at points 33, 34, and 35 in Fig. 1.

In the case of a design composed largely of curved members as in the-sample design herein illustrated, I prefer to employ a plurality of additional reinforcing members. In the present instance, straight "wires or rods do the work quite satisfactorily. With reference to Fig. l, itwill be `seen that I employ four continuous rods 36, 37 38 and 39J The rods at their ends as at 39 are soldered to the inner faces of the outer strips and extend through. notches orA apertures in the` intermediate' Wherever the rods intersect eachlother as the 'aft shown at 41 or pass through apertures in the intermediate strips, `they are united to each other or to the strips by means such as soldering.

ready to be laid b-y the workmen on the job Without the necessity of connecting the various parts together or doing any other mechanical work on the lllage itself. vSuch grillage is used in the dllowing manner.

On the sub-base which may be tile or concrete, there is placed a layer of lline sandcement concrete 42 which is screeded off to uniform horizontal surface 43 which furnishes the base for-the terrazzo layer 44. After the b-ase 42 is set sufficiently, the grille units are located thereon in proper` relative position to make the desired deslgn and the areas enclosed thereby are filled with a ter'- razzo mix of the proper color. 'The remainder of the flooring space around the units is then filled with terrazzo of a contrasting color, the subsequent steps of the process being the same as ordina-rily prac ticed by those skilled in the art.

Under the old practice the laying out and the making of an ornamental terrazzo flooring of contrasting colors was val slow and tiresome process frequently resulting in the. tying up of an expensive buildi until the work was completed. Also, owing'. tothe slowness and length of .the time necessary tolay out the design and position the (strips after the supporting base was finished, care had to be taken to insure a satisfactory bond between the terrazzo surface layer and the upper surface of the underneath baseY layer which, in many cases, hadbecome quite dry may be laid with my improved units, the

making of a satisfactory bond or weld between the base and the terrazzo is greatly facilitated. l

From a labor and cost saving standpoint the advantages of my factory made units will be recognized by those having to do with building or construction work, as it is well understood that the'cost of making an article in the field `is usually several times the cost of making up the article in advance in va factory. i

The details of construction herein disclosed being illustrative of only a single application of myinvention, it will be understood that the scope of same should be determined by reference to the appended claims, said claims being'construed as broadly as possible consistent with the state of I claim as my invention: y

1. A factory made element for making ornamental terrazzo flooring comprising a metal grille unit of uniform depth composed of strips of vrectangular fcross section having their opposite narrow edge faces located respectively4 in the top and bottom planes of the unit, means for uniting together said strips located between the top and bottom planes of the grille, and reinforcing members 1 located below the top plane of the grille c'oinecting the strips of the grille and 'tying the said strips against lateral shifting movement between said planes. l

2. A factory made element for making o rnamental terrazzo flooring comprising a metal grille unit of uniform depth composed of strips of rectangular cross section having their opposite narrow edge faces located respectively in the top and bottomvplanes` of the unit, means 'for uniting together said strips'located between the top and bottom plane of the grille, and wires located below the top plane of the grille connecting the f strips `of the grille and tying the said strips f against lateral shifting movement between said planes.

3. An element for making ornamental terrazzo oring comprising a metal grille unit composed of a plurality of relatively wide 1- i but' thi-n, metal strips arranged relative to" each other so as to form the desired pattern,

said strips having their op osite narrow edge faces located respectively 1n the top and bottom planes of the uni t,and means for tying said strlps together so as to maintain the same in said arrangement, said means corn-4 said ,strips having their upper narrow edge prising a plurality of wires extending befaces located in a plane common to all, and 10 tween and anchored to some of said strips. constituting the top plane of the unit, and

4. An element for making ornamental tera plurality ofreinforcing members disposed 5 razzo flooring comprising a metal grille unit below said top plane, extending between and composed of a plurality of united relatively anchored to some of said strips for maintainwide but thin metal strips arranged on edge ing the strips in said arrangement.

and positioned to form the desired pattern, PASCAL SYLVESTER.. 

